Tennessee Law Expands Vehicular Assault Charges to Include Broken Bones

What Happened

Tennessee has updated its legal definition of serious bodily injury for traffic-related crimes. As of July 1, drivers suspected of impairment who cause a collision resulting in a fracture face vehicular assault charges.

The change, enacted via Public Chapter 875, removes the previous requirement that victims be minors for a bone fracture to qualify as a serious injury. This legislative shift brings adult victims under the same legal protections.

Legal experts note that this criminal update intersects significantly with civil litigation. While criminal proceedings focus on state accountability, the classification of an injury can fundamentally alter the timeline and potential outcomes for personal injury claims.

The Core Points

Public Chapter 875 classifies bone fractures as serious bodily injury for all victims.
Criminal charges can now extend the civil statute of limitations from one year to two.
Impaired driving convictions may eliminate state caps on punitive damages.
Criminal evidence, including blood tests, can now be leveraged in civil litigation.
Civil and criminal cases remain legally distinct but mutually influential.

Context in 60 Seconds

This legislative change reflects a broader trend toward strengthening penalties for impaired driving and prioritizing victim restitution. By lowering the threshold for what constitutes serious injury in criminal statutes, the state creates a tighter link between criminal conviction and civil liability.

For the legal industry, this signals a shift in how personal injury cases are managed. Attorneys must now navigate the expanded intersection of criminal evidence—such as blood tests and crash reconstructions—as they build civil claims for medical expenses and lost wages.

Bottom Line

Drivers in Tennessee now face stricter criminal consequences for causing fractures in impaired driving accidents, which also impacts the legal strategy for related civil injury claims.

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